


summer blues.

by rapunzels



Category: Dawson's Creek
Genre: F/M, Multi, Summer Vacation, au of the summer between s2 & s3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-18
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-13 19:21:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29531199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rapunzels/pseuds/rapunzels
Summary: a quick fic of the summer between s2 & s3 of dawson's creek inspired by a post sent to me that said it was unrealistic that joey and pacey weren't friends before season 3. i agree :)
Relationships: Jack McPhee/Pacey Witter, Jen Lindley/Jack McPhee, Jen Lindley/Joey Potter, Jen Lindley/Joey Potter/Pacey Witter, Jen Lindley/Pacey Witter, Joey Potter/Pacey Witter
Comments: 3
Kudos: 31





	summer blues.

**Author's Note:**

> i said this was gonna be a one shot and suddenly i wrote 6k words lol
> 
> this is dedicated to the paceycon groupchat who i love very very much !!! #paceycon2022 
> 
> thank you to cris for sending me the post that inspired this!

_I should probably call her._

That’s what Pacey had written about Joey in his latest letter to Andie. Joey had been distant from everyone ever since she helped put her dad in jail again --- understandably so. Pacey had backed off, along with Jen and Jack, who were the only ones still in Cape Side for the summer. It’s not like he and Joey were tight or anything, but it still felt weird to not have her around, to not tease her mercilessly everyday and have her tease him easily right back.

He’d seen her in passing once, in the grocery store. She didn’t see him. She looked caught up in her own head, uncharacteristically quiet and… sad. Pacey didn’t approach her. He stayed back, giving her the space he knew she needed, though he wanted nothing more than to try to make her smile. Why, he couldn’t exactly place.

It was about three weeks into summer break when Pacey finally broke. “Has anyone heard from Joey lately?” he asked Jen and Jack while they were all hanging out in Grams’ living room. It’d become an unspoken tradition for the three of them to get together almost everyday and just find something stupid to do together, wordlessly helping each other through a tough summer. Today, they’d chosen to play dumb card games, and were currently on their fourth round of Go Fish.

“Not really,” Jack answers with a simple shrug. “I mean, I think I’ve seen her walking around maybe twice, and we smile at each other and wave. But it looks like she doesn’t really want to talk to anyone right now.” He shuffles his cards around in his hand. “Jen, you got any nines?”

Jen groans, handing him her card. Jack chuckles, laying down his cards triumphantly. “I mean, she has every right to some space,” Jen says, looking over to Pacey. “What happened was pretty intense.” She looks over her cards, then back up at him. “Any fives?”

“Go fish,” Pacey answers with a shake of his head. He should probably let the topic die, but for some inexplicable reason, he can’t. “Do you guys think we should… do something?”

Jen raises an eyebrow. “For Joey? _You_ want to do something for _Joey_?”

“What?” Pacey questions, trying to play it cool. “I’m not a heartless monster. Joey and I have a nice back and forth, but it’s not like she’s my sworn enemy who I wish harm upon. And I’m not saying we have to move mountains for her, just… I don’t know, keep her company and give her some candy, or something.”

Jack snickers, and Pacey rolls his eyes. “Sorry,” Jack says, composing himself. “I just don’t think Joey is a candy person, is all.”

“Fine, then we get her some carrot sticks.”

“Pace, ignore him,” Jen says, slapping Jack lightly on the arm. Pacey was still getting used to how tight the two had instantly become since living together now. But it also felt natural --- the two of them fit well. Jen continues, “I think it’s a nice idea, though a little surprising coming from you.”

“Alright, I get it,” Pacey waves it off. God forbid if the two of them knew about when Pacey kissed Joey that one time. He’d never told anyone about it --- and he never would, mostly out of embarrassment. He didn’t regret doing it, but he’d be lying if he said he didn’t stay up that night thinking about how stupid it was of him to think that Joey could ever care for someone like that unless that person was Dawson Leery. But that was ages ago, now. He was happy with Andie, and he hadn’t thought about Joey like that ever since. But he’d looked at Joey differently ever since that day, no longer seeing her as just an annoyance to pick on, but someone who was actually fun to be around. Which is probably why he missed her.

“We’re sorry,” Jen says, and Pacey refocuses on the present. “It’s a nice idea. You’re probably right, she could use some company. We can try to go see her tomorrow. Would that work?”

“It’s not like any of us had other plans,” Jack teases.

“So that’s a yes.”

“Okay. Great,” Pacey says, relieved that this conversation ended with something more than just merciless teasing at his expense. He finally looks at his cards. “Jack, gimme your eight.”

“How did you even know?” Jack whines. “You’re cheating!”

“Maybe you shouldn’t hold your cards so lazily,” Pacey quips, taking his card with a grin. “Or sit in front of a TV screen when it’s off.”

Jack instantly looks behind him and groans. “ _Now_ you tell me.”

* * *

The three of them meet up for lunch at Grams’, and chat about what they should do for Joey the whole time. Even Grams chimes in here and there, saying that it was very sweet of them to care about their friend like this and assuring them that she’d been praying for Joey every night.

“Thanks Grams,” Jen says genuinely with a soft smile. “Hopefully He’s listening.”

“He always is, Jennifer,” Grams replies with raised brows, and Jack and Pacey share a grin. “Now,” she continues, “Just be gentle with her. I know you all have your best intentions at heart, but that poor girl went through a lot. This might not be as easy as you hope it to be.”

“Joey is never easy,” Pacey pipes up before stuffing more mashed potatoes into his mouth.

Jack nods and Jen rolls her eyes. “Thanks for the advice, Grams,” she says.

“And for the food,” Jack adds, mouth full.

“Jack, we’ve talked about this,” Grams warns him.

“Right.” He swallows. “Sorry.” He throws her an apologetic grin, and Grams pats his face lovingly.

Pacey smiles to himself. Hiding away in this house had become his saving grace this summer, and he was thankful that this new family had taken him in without a second thought. Jack knew he needed a distraction from thinking about Andie all day, and Jen knew what it was like to have a shitty family at home that you didn’t want to be around. They all fit easily, even with Dawson away in Philadelphia, who used to be their middle ground.

They finish eating and help with the dishes, and Pacey feels the nice warmth of domesticity that accompanies it.

“Are we actually getting Joey carrot sticks?” Jack asks as he puts the last plate away.

Jen uses her towel to hit him teasingly, and the two of them share a laugh.

“By the way,” Pacey speaks up, “Could we not tell Joey this was my idea?”

“Why?” Jen asks with a raised brow. “Are you scared she’ll find out you actually care about her?”

He scoffs. “No. I just don’t think it matters who came up with this. We’re all her friends.”

“Right,” Jack teases. “Shall we, then?”

“After you.” Pacey motions for them to go ahead, wanting to stay a step or two behind for a bit while he gathers the courage to do this. He couldn’t for the life of him figure out why he had such an urge to see Joey and why he convinced them to make it happen. He could’ve just gone up to her house himself, but for some reason the idea of spending one on one time with her right now kind of scared him. He couldn’t pinpoint why.

The three of them walk together, easy conversation flowing between them despite already spending almost every day together. Jack updates Pacey on Andie, and vice versa. Jen ends up telling them a crazy story about a time in New York where she ran into Tom Hanks and spilled juice all over him. Apparently he was sweet about it, and even bought her another cup, because of course that’s something that would happen to eleven year old Jen Lindley.

They get to Joey’s house and Pacey sucks in a deep breath. Jen knocks for them, and the three of them wait patiently while they hear feet scurrying around inside.

Joey opens the door, and is instantly taken back by the sight of them. She’s quick to catch herself and instead throw them a smile. “Hey, guys… Uh, what are you all doing here?”

“Hey, Jo,” Jack greets her with a smile, taking the lead. “Grams wanted us to give you some leftover cookies we all baked two days ago. They’re still fresh, we promise.” He holds out the container, and Joey takes it with a grateful smile.

“And we missed you,” Jen adds softly. “We wanted to check up on you and see how you’re doing.”

Joey softens, but then wordlessly raises an eyebrow at Pacey.

He simply shrugs. “They forced me to come,” he lies easily. He can tell Jen and Jack are both rolling their eyes, but he keeps his charade up.

“Do you wanna hang with us for a bit?” Jen asks. “We don’t want to force you to do it or anything, but we wanted to be here for you. If you want us.”

Joey hesitates, but then lets out a sigh. “Actually, yeah. Do you guys wanna go do something? I’d ask you to come in but to be honest I’m a little sick of this house right now.” Obviously, some bad memories were tied to it.

“I’m always down for walking towards some food,” Jack agrees eagerly. “Do you guys want some pizza?”

“We literally ate, like, twenty minutes ago, Jack,” Jen reminds him, flabbergasted.

“Yeah, but we walked it all off on the way here and we have to walk all the way to the pizza place.”

“How about a pizza slice for Jackers here and some ice cream for the rest of us?” Pacey offers.

Joey grins, and Pacey feels a small twinge of accomplishment. “Perfect.” She puts the box of cookies away in her kitchen and comes back to meet them outside. Before they start walking, though, Jack makes sure to pull Joey into a tight hug. Jen follows his example and does the same, and then suddenly Joey is face to face with Pacey.

He swallows, and she awkwardly shrugs her shoulders. Pacey decides he needs to man up and take the lead here, so he chuckles to break the ice. “Come on, Potter. I promise I showered last night.”

She rolls her eyes, but he catches the glimpse of a smile. “Fine,” she grumbles dramatically, and he can’t help but soften at the familiarity of her teasing him like this. She hugs him for a moment less than the other two, but he doesn’t mind. He still squeezes her a little tighter than he would have two years ago.

The four of them start their trek into town, keeping conversation as light and normal as possible, and Joey slowly warms up into it. She even catches herself smiling here and there, which she hadn’t done in a while. She didn’t know what had made the three of them suddenly decide to show up at her door, but she was grateful they did. Spending time by herself had been good for the first week or so, but she’d missed interacting with people who weren’t Bessie or Alexander. She had missed her friends. Hell, she’d even missed Pacey.

They reach the pizza place in what seems like record time for Joey, especially for the walking distance. But apparently time really does fly when you’re having fun --- or in her case, when you see your friends for the first time in a month. They take their seats on squeaky cheap chairs, and Joey feels so overwhelmingly relieved to be out of her house with other people that she has to remind herself not to cry.

“You guys sure you don’t want anything?” Jack asks as he gets up from his seat to order.

Joey shakes her head. “I just had a big lunch with Bessie, so I’m alright.”

“Still full from the Grams feast,” Pacey answers, and Jen nods in agreement.

“Oh, no ma’am,” Jack is quick to say to Jen, who looks surprised at his callout. “You owe me food, remember?”

She takes a moment to run back her memory, and then grimaces once she finally recalls what he’s talking about. “Shit. Okay, fine,” she groans, getting up from her seat. “We’ll be right back. Don’t kill each other, please.”

“No promises,” Pacey retorts easily, then watches the duo walk to the counter with a smile.

“What was that about?” Joey asks once they’re out of earshot.

“No idea. They got all these inside jokes now that they’re roommates,” he responds with a chuckle. “I’ve gotten used to it, and at this point I don’t even ask. It was probably some embarrassing bet they made while brushing their teeth together or something.”

Joey smiles. “They really seem to have gotten close.”

“Tell me about it. I wouldn’t be surprised if they show up to the first day of school in cute little best friend sweaters.”

“It’s sweet,” Joey says, and Pacey simply nods, not knowing what else to add. A silence falls between them for a minute, and he plays with the condiments on the table to avoid how awkward it was. This is why he didn’t wanna be alone with her just yet. He didn’t really know how he could comfort her, and he was scared of saying something stupid and insensitive. Not that that was ever his goal, but Pacey had a habit of screwing things up even when he didn’t mean to.

“So, have you heard from Dawson at all?” Joey asks, breaking their silence.

Pacey tries his best not to let out the most humorless chuckle of all time. He had been waiting for her to bring him up, and to be fair to Joey, it did take her longer than he thought. It must be eating her up inside not to know anything about her _soulmate_ or his summer. Pacey simply shrugs. “Not really. He’s only called me once, and I’m sure he’ll send a postcard eventually, but I think he’s just really busy helping out his mom. I think he may even be unofficially interning at her news office or whatever.”

Joey nods, trying not to look disappointed at the lack of information. “I see. Well, good for him, then.”

“Yeah.” Pacey kind of wants to not talk about Dawson and Joey right now. Or ever, for that matter. He’d always hated how he had been their third wheel all their lives, always involved in their pointless will-they-won’t-they without ever actually agreeing to the part. “Look, Jo, you did the right thing, okay? With your dad. I know it was hard, and everything sucks, and Dawson definitely screwed up, but things will get better.”

“Since when do you give me words of encouragement?” she questions stubbornly.

Pacey tries not to roll his eyes. “This is a one time deal, so you better take it, Potter.”

“Look, Pacey, I appreciate it, but you have no idea what I’m going through right now.”

“You’re right. I don’t,” he agrees easily, to Joey’s surprise. “No one does. But that doesn’t mean you have to face all of it alone, and it also doesn’t mean that you’re gonna have to deal with it forever. You got a whole life ahead of you, Joey, and we both know it’s gonna be a good one. If anyone’s meant to get out of this stupid dead end town and actually make something of themselves, it’s you. It always has been.”

Joey’s a little stunned by such an intense speech of support from the person she’d least expect it from. She catches his eye, and she can see he meant every word. It’s a side of Pacey she’s never really seen, and she can’t deny that she’s a little thrown back by how much it means to her to hear all that. “Wow. Um, thanks, Pacey.” She smiles at him softly, feeling a little guilty for the way she snapped at him a few moments ago. He really looked like he… cared. About her.

“Anytime, Potter,” he says, acting as nonchalant as possible.  
  
Jack returns with two slices, because he’s insane, and he and Jen take their seats on the table as Pacey and Joey act like they didn’t have the most heartfelt honest conversation the two of them had ever shared.

* * *

After Jack engulfs his pizza, the four of them head a little down the street to stop for the promised ice cream. They all pitch in for Joey, not taking no for an answer when she insists that she can pay for herself.

“Jo, just let us do it for you, okay?” Jen pleads, and Joey sighs defeatedly, rolling her eyes with a smile and finally agreeing.

They all get double scoops and begin their journeys back home, walking slower than they did the way there because they didn’t actually want to part ways. But the sun was setting and they all had curfews to keep.

Somehow Jack and Joey end up walking together while Pacey and Jen are ahead of them, arguing childishly over some emo band Joey had never heard of.

“How did you already finish your cone?” Joey asks him in amazement. She was still only on her second scoop.

“It was tasty,” Jack answers with a shrug, throwing her a grin.

She laughs with a shake of her head. “You’re insane.”

“You still dated me,” he retorts.

“ _Why_ would you bring that up?” Joey grimaces dramatically.

“I don’t know. We haven’t really talked since…” He trails off, but she knows what he’s trying to say. Since they broke up, they’d been pretty good at keeping a friendship. Joey had no hard feelings at all --- he had literally discovered a big part of himself, and she didn’t exactly fit it. Everything since, however, had spiraled so much that apparently she had forgotten to actually keep up the friendship. Now she felt guilty.

“I’m sorry,” she tells him genuinely. “You’re so important to me. Things just kept happening and everything kept piling up, and…” She sighs, exhausted from even thinking about it all.

“Hey, it’s not a big deal,” he assures her. “I just hope you know that I’m always going to be here for you. No matter how much time passes or how much shit happens, you’ll always have me.”

Joey’s chest fills up with a warmth she hadn’t felt in a while. She smiles at him with a nod. “You’ll always have me, too.”

“I better.” Jack wraps his arm around her shoulders and she falls into his familiar touch easily as they continue their way home.

* * *

The next day, Joey had agreed to meet the three of them again for a beach day. When she told Bessie, her older sister practically jumped for joy at the idea of Joey being around her friends again.

“It’s not like I ever stopped being friends with them, Bess,” she reminds her.

“I know that. But I still think it’s great you’re going out again and getting yourself back out there,” Bessie replies with a sweet caress to her arm. “Have fun, okay? But don’t be out too late.”

“We won’t,” Joey assures her with her classic younger sister eye roll. She gathers her things and heads out the door.

She gets to the beach and walks over to the spot they all said they would meet at, and finds that only Pacey is there.

“Hey,” she says tentatively. “I thought I was on time.”

Pacey turns around to face her, and smiles as a greeting. “You are. Those two are just unreliable sometimes. It’s happened a few times, and it’s usually because Grams makes them do something for her at the last minute, or they lose track of time watching _Will & Grace_ together. You can laugh, but it’s true. It’s happened.”

Joey chuckles, then draws circles on the pavement a little awkwardly. “Should we wait for them for a bit longer?”

“Nah, we should go get spots before it gets busy,” Pacey answers, grabbing his stuff.

“How will they know where to find us?”

“We always sit around the same area,” he assures her, and Joey can’t help but feel a twinge of sadness at his words, where the “we” doesn’t really include her. She’d somehow missed out on so much, on creating better memories to overshadow the bad ones with people she loved.

“You doing okay, Potter?” Pacey asks her with furrowed brows as he leads the way. Either she was unconsciously showing her feelings on her face or Pacey could read her better than she thought. She’d have to work on fixing that.

“Yeah, fine,” she quickly assures him. “Just mentally checking that I didn’t forget anything.”

“Today is supposed to be relaxing and fun, Jo. Let the whole restless perfectionist thing die for a day, would you?”

“Easier said than done, Pace,” she retorts, following his stride as they get to the apparent usual spot.

They set down their chairs and blankets, a silence falling between them which wasn’t that awkward because there were already children screaming and laughing around them. Once they’re all set up, Joey takes a seat on her blanket and takes off her shirt so she can sunbathe in her bikini top, making sure that Pacey is busy with something when she does it. She starts taking a book out of her bag, but doesn’t get to open it due to Pacey groaning dramatically.

“Seriously, Potter?” he questions with a shake of his head. “It’s summer vacation.”

“So?” she retorts back. “I’m reading for pleasure.”

Pacey mocks complete disgust at her response. “Absolutely not.” He reaches for her book, but she’s quick to pull it out of reach. “Oh, c’mon, Jo. You’re seriously gonna spend our beach time reading? There’s no way it’s _that_ good.”

“It’s _To Kill A Mockingbird_ , and it’s a classic,” Joey fights back, but Pacey only groans more. “Besides, I’m just reading until Jack and Jen get here. I’ll have fun after.”

At that, Pacey raises an eyebrow. “What, you’re saying you can’t have fun with me?”

“Yep. Exactly. Go build a sandcastle or something and leave me and my book alone, please.”

Pacey chuckles, taking on the challenge she didn’t even actually give him. He takes off his shirt and places it on his chair, then, when Joey isn’t looking, he sneaks up behind her and grabs her by the waist, lifting her up off the ground.

“Wha --- Pacey!” She instantly exclaims. Her book falls from her grip and into the sand, so she uses her hands to slap his arms instead. “What are you doing?! Put me down!”

He chuckles as he takes her closer to the water. “What, is this not fun?” he taunts.

“No, you are insane and I will personally be calling the mental asylum to get you admitted,” she retorts, legs flailing.

“Come on, Jo, live a little,” he teases, finally getting to the water’s edge. It’s cool and refreshing as it washes over his feet.

“Pacey, if you drop me in this water, I swear to god ---”

“Hey, I’m not a monster.” He puts her down gently, letting her get used to the water before he really pulls away. “See? You’re fine. Your hummingbirds can wait.”

She turns to face him, eyes rolling. “It’s _mockingbird_. And you’re the freaking worst.” She slaps him across his bare chest, but he simply laughs it off.

“Look, I’m not just gonna sit around while we wait for the roomies to show up. I know you’d rather blow your brains out than spend any time alone with me, but I don’t think you have any other choice.”

“Yes, I do. Harper Lee. Goodbye.” She turns to attempt to walk back to their stuff, but Pacey manages to grab her hand to stop her.

“Oh, c’mon, Jo,” he pleads, actually genuine. “You can’t deny that this water is refreshing on this hot summer day.”

Joey huffs stubbornly, annoyed that he was right. They hadn’t even been out for ten minutes and she was already sweating. Pacey tugs on her hand and she rolls her eyes dramatically, taking only one miniscule step closer to him. He grins triumphantly, nodding her along.

“It’s not awful,” she finally admits.

“As I live and breathe, Joey Potter has agreed with me. Somebody call the Pope, because we might need to make this a holiday,” Pacey jokes, and Joey hates that it makes her smile slightly.

“You’re unbearable.”

“Hurtful,” he retaliates. “Maybe you need to _cool off_.” With that, he grins sheepishly, and then splashes water her way, getting her chest wet and making her yelp at the cold sensation on her skin.

“Pacey!” Joey stands there, shocked for a second, before hitting back at him with her own splash. “You’re dead,” she warns him, her competitive side taking over.

“You got nothin’ on me, Potter,” he teases, going deeper into the water. She shakes her head, following behind and aiming water at his face.

She squeals every time he manages to get a hit, but she’s not bad either. They’re both soaked pretty quickly, and eventually Joey is able to get close enough to him that she attempts to push him fully underwater. Unfortunately, Pacey has some strength advantage on her, so the two fight childishly back and forth, until finally, he gives in and lets her take him down --- but not without dragging her down with him.

They resurface at the same time, and Joey is quick to splash him in his face once again. “I won,” she announces proudly.

“No way,” he’s quick to counter. “We both went under.”

“Yeah, but you went under first.”

“We never even established rules for this game!”

“It doesn’t matter what the rules are, because I win.”

“You can’t just declare yourself the winner of a game that we weren’t even playing!”

“Sounds like what a loser would say, Pace.”

He responds by splashing her again.

She’s about to retaliate when she hears someone shouting their names from the shore, and they both look to see Jack and Jen finally arriving.

“There _will_ be a rematch, Potter,” Pacey warns her before making his way out of the water.

She follows close behind him. “You’re such a sadist.”

“Hey, kiddos,” Jen greets them once they finally get back, both of them reaching for their towels. “Damn, did we miss all the fun already?”

Joey and Pacey share a look, and even genuine smiles. “Just warming up,” Pacey answers with a shrug as he dries his hair.

“Sorry, we totally lost track of time watching _Will & Grace,_” Jack says as he takes off his shirt.

Pacey instantly catches Joey’s eyes and gives her an I-told-you-so look, and she can’t help but genuinely laugh out loud for the first time in a long time.

* * *

The summer ended up racing by after that. The four of them got together basically everyday, sometimes finding things to do, sometimes just sitting around doing nothing and simply enjoying each other’s company. They talked about everything and nothing, joked around, played every board game they owned. It was practically a movie perfect summer.

Joey sometimes felt guilty about being happy after everything she had gone through. She would get caught up in her head, believing that she didn’t deserve any of it. She hated how normal things felt sometimes, like this is what every typical teenager goes through, when she had the least typical life of all. _She put her dad in jail. Again._ She didn’t deserve to feel normal, or content. She shouldn’t be.

Strangely enough, it was always Pacey who seemed to catch on to her self-pitying moods, and even worse, he’d always manage to snap her out of it. He’d say something stupid to get her to tease him, or tell a joke to make her crack a smile. They never acknowledged that understanding between them verbally, but they both knew it was there. It was weird, to say the least, to have someone other than Dawson know her so well. But she was secretly thankful for it.

On one of the last nights of the summer, Jack convinced them all to have an end of summer campfire. They all meet up for dinner at Grams’, and Bessie and Alexander are also invited to come. The chatter was lively, the dinner was delicious, and everything was normal yet again.

Alex gets sleepy soon after, so he and Bessie leave with quick goodbyes and a wrapped up plate of leftovers. Pacey promises Bessie to drive Joey home safe, and then Grams makes the girls some tea to drink while the boys get started on building the fire in the backyard.

“We’re very blessed with such a pretty night tonight, don’t you girls think?” she asks as she sits down with them on the porch.

Joey nods, graciously accepting her teacup. “It’s been a great summer.”

“So I hear,” Grams says with a smile. “I would ask you both if you’re excited for the new school year, but I think I know Jennifer’s answer already.”

Jen chuckles. “You know me well, Grams.”

“I’m sure I’ll enjoy the structure again,” Joey answers. “It will be nice to have something to focus on.”

“Indeed,” Grams agrees, laying a supportive hand on her thigh. “And you’ll achieve it all with ease, my dear.”

“Thank you.” Joey throws her a grateful smile and then sips her tea.

“You know, you can always find solace here should you need it,” Grams says, holding her own warm cup close. “I’ve already adopted two children this last year, and it seems like a third one was acquired over the summer.” She looks over to Pacey, who was throwing in more firewood into their pit. “A fourth one would be no bother.”

Jen laughs so loudly that Jack looks up from several feet away to throw her a questioning look. “I never thought my Grams’ place would be home to the Cape Side Orphanage for Troubled Children.”

“I cannot avoid the Lord’s plan, my dear.”

Joey can’t hold back her own laughter. “Thank you, Grams, I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.”

* * *

The boys finally got a good enough fire going, so Grams excuses herself to bed and tells them all to not stay up too late. The four of them sit around the fire, grateful for its warmth in a somewhat chilly night. It was the first time in a while that Joey needed a hoodie outside, which made the realization that the summer was really ending all the more real.

“So, are we supposed to start singing a camp song or what?” Jen teasingly asks.

“You know any good ones?” Jack jokes along before shrugging. “I just thought we’d enjoy our last night together.”

“God, you’re acting like we’re all off to war or something,” Jen says with a chuckle.

“High school, war, same thing,” Pacey pipes in.

“Well, I think it’s sweet, Jack,” Joey says, throwing him a smile. “We can say what our favorite memories of the summer were, or something.”

“Great idea, Jo,” Jack agrees. “I’ll start and say that Grams beating all our asses in the _Game of Life_ was a moment for the history books.”

“Which was so unfair!” Jen adds. “She’s already won at _real_ life, she should leave the rest of us some hope through a dumb game.”

“You’re just mad that you were a single mom with four kids and shit job,” Pacey quips.

“Yeah, because that’s already what I’m gonna get, and I was hoping for some escapism.”

“Please, you’ll never be a single mom,” Jack protests. “There’s no way anyone would leave you once they have you.”

Jen softens. “That might just be one of the sweetest things anyone has said to me.”

He smiles at her with a cocky shrug. “Besides, I’ll be your baby daddy any day.”

“Oh, I know you will,” Jen agrees before placing a kiss on his temple.

Pacey groans. “God, you two are gross.”

“You love us,” Jack teases, blowing him a kiss.

“Unfortunately,” Pacey says under his breath.

“Give us _your_ favorite memory, Pace,” Jen pleads with a grin.

He shrugs. “I don’t know if I can pick one. But…” Pacey sighs, adjusting himself in his seat. He usually wasn’t the mushy type around his friends, but something about the nostalgic mood of the night made him gentle. “Look, all I know is that for a long time, Dawson was my only real friend. And then for the past year, Andie’s been my life. And when it clicked that I wasn’t gonna have either of them around this summer, I kinda freaked out. I thought about all the horrible things that could happen without them to ground me, or how I would somehow spiral and completely lose myself, but… Well, I guess what I’m saying is that I’m really glad you guys were around.” He catches Joey’s eyes and smiles. “Even you, Potter.”

“Gee, thanks, Pace,” she replies, but she throws him a smile that she knows he’ll understand. _Me too._

“Wow. I think _this_ might be my favorite memory,” Jen says, reaching over to squeeze Pacey’s hand. “All of us being mushy around a fire after a summer of laughing together.” She breathes in the moment for a second. “You know, I rarely ever feel like I belong anywhere. I’ve always been the weird puzzle piece trying to fit in, stirring up trouble and just being a burden to everyone around me.” Before any of them can interrupt her and disagree, Jen continues. “ _But_ \--- for once, I didn’t feel like that. I feel like I found my home. And my people. I try to live in the moment and not stress too much about the future, but you guys are the one thing I hope I can keep for a long time.”

“I hope so, too,” Joey agrees, trying her best not to tear up. “I thought this was gonna be the worst summer of my life, but you guys made it bearable. I just… I can’t thank you all enough for being there for me.”

“You should thank Pacey,” Jen says, and Pacey instantly whips his head and shoots daggers at her with his eyes. Jen simply laughs. “Shit, sorry.”

“Wait, what?” Joey asks, confused as to what she witnessed and what any of it meant.

“Pacey was the one that made us go visit you that day,” Jack tells her, shrugging when Pacey stares him down, too.

“Gee, way to keep a secret, you two,” he groans under his breath.  
  
Joey tries to process the information to little avail. “Wait, wait, wait. _Pacey_ wanted to check up on me?”

“Crazy, I know,” Jen agrees.

“Alright, this was fun, guys,” Pacey dramatically says as he attempts to get up and leave. Jack manages to grab his arm and convinces him to sit back down.

Joey can’t really wrap her head around it. Of all of them, _Pacey Witter_ was the one that was worried about her? Enough to convince them to check up on her, unknowingly saving her from the pits of despair that would have swallowed her whole this summer? “Why?” is all she manages to say out loud.

Pacey shrugs, avoiding her eyes. “I don’t know. I saw you around town and you looked off.”

“Did you promise Dawson you’d look after me, or something?”

He rolls his eyes, despite his best efforts. “No, Potter, I don’t only care about you when Dawson tells me to.”

“So you’re admitting you care about me.”

“On the off night, maybe. Right now, not so much.”

Joey chuckles. She can’t quite believe her ears. She wants to tease him right back, but for some reason it feels wrong to chalk all of this up to just another one of their bickering back and forths. “Thanks, Pacey. I really owe you one.”

He finally looks up at her, seeing her sincerity. It makes him soften, and he’s glad that the fire offers little light for her to see him blushing slightly. He smiles back at her, genuine. “Any time, Potter.”

Three years ago, Joey never would have pictured this type of moment happening between the two of them. Pacey was probably the last person she ever would have run to for comfort, and definitely the last person she’d expect to check up on her and lift her spirits.

But a lot can change in one summer, apparently.


End file.
